Mortgage Renewal Rates in Canada: Switch, Save and Track Your Renewal
Most Canadians sign the renewal letter their lender sends them. That letter is not the lender's best mortgage renewal rate — it is the rate they are willing to charge someone who does not shop. The best mortgage renewal rates come from switching lenders, and the window to do it opens 90 to 120 days before maturity.
What the gap is actually worth
On a $420,000 balance with 20 years left, a renewal letter at 5.49% against a market rate of 4.19%:
| Payment on the letter | $2,872.13 |
| Payment at market | $2,579.30 |
| Difference each month | $292.83 |
| Interest saved over the five-year term | $25,631 |
| And you owe less at the end of it | $8,061 |
Those are our numbers. Put your own in below.
We will notify you at 90 days
Get notified on best mortgage rates for transfer and refinance to compare your monthly savings.
What Your Lender's Offer Is Costing You
Enter the rate on your renewal letter and we will price it against our board over the same term. Semi-annual compounding, the Canadian convention.
The timeline that matters
Everything on the lender's side of this is designed to reach you late. Our reminder is designed to reach you early.
We notify you
Check the board against your renewal letter. No credit pull and no commitment.
Lock
Rate holds run up to 120 days. If rates rise you are protected; if they fall you re-lock.
Decide
Switch, or take the match from your current lender. Either way you are choosing, not defaulting.
Their letter
This is when most people first engage — and when their options have already closed.
Mortgage renewal rates by province
Rates are national, but the switch process is not — legal convention, and who pays for it, differs.
Mortgage renewal questions
When should I start shopping my renewal?
Around 90 days out. Most lenders hold a rate for up to 120 days, so at 90 you have time to gather documents and still lock a full hold. Your current lender typically writes to you at 30 days, by which point you have almost no leverage left.
Does switching lenders at renewal cost me anything?
On a straight switch — same balance, same amortization, no new money — most lenders cover the legal and appraisal cost to win the file. If you are taking equity out it is a refinance, not a switch, and that carries legal costs and a higher rate shelf.
Do I have to requalify?
If you stay with your current lender, no — renewing in place does not require a stress test. If you switch, yes, the new lender qualifies you at the greater of your rate plus 2% and 5.25%. That is a real consideration if your income has changed since you last applied.
My lender says they will match. Should I just let them?
Often, yes — a match with no paperwork is a good outcome. But you only get the match if you have a competing offer to show them, which means shopping it anyway. The people who accept the first letter are the ones paying for everyone else's discount.
What if my credit has gone backwards since I got the mortgage?
Then staying put is likely the cheaper move, and it is exactly the file where a broker earns their fee. Our published board will tell you what the market is doing before you do anything that shows up on your credit report.
Renewing in the next two years?
Set a notification now and we will reach you at 90 days, while you still have room to shop. When you are ready to act, we will introduce you to a broker who can place it.
